China takes dispute with Vietnam to UN

A Chinese ship, left, shoots water cannon at a Vietnamese vessel, right, off the Vietnam coast in May. Pic: AP.

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UNITED NATIONS (AP) — China has taken its dispute with Vietnam over deploying a drilling rig in contested waters to the United Nations.

China’s deputy ambassador Wang Min sent a “position paper” on the rig’s operation in the South China Sea to Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Monday and asked the U.N. chief to circulate it to the 193 members of the General Assembly.

China sent the rig into disputed waters off the Paracel islands, which Vietnam also claims on May 1, provoking a confrontation, complaints from Hanoi, and street protests that turned into bloody anti-Chinese riots. Hundreds of factories were damaged and at least two Chinese workers were killed and 140 injured.

The position paper accuses Vietnam of illegally disrupting the Chinese drilling operation and infringing on China’s sovereignty.